Process of milling alfalfa.



T. PGNSAR, DECD.

A. HNKBNKBLLBR, ADMINISTRATOR.

PROCESS 0F MILLING ALFALFA.

APPLICATION FILED TUNE 1,1907.

Patented Malt 18, 1.913.

Theodore Ponsor,

attenua;

UNITED f s'refins PATENT oanion y THEODOE ONSAB, OF SOUTH OMAHA., NEBRASKA; ANDREW FINKENKELLEB, 0F FLORENCE, NEBRASKA, 'ADMINISTRATOR-'0F SAIE QPONSAE, DECEASEIL ASSIGNOR TO DAVID O. BARNELL AND EDWARD L. BRADLEY, BOTH 0F OMAHA, NEBRASKA..

PROCESS OF HILJING LFALFA.

Speclcation of Letters Patent.

Patented Man tt Application tiled Jane l., 1967. gerlel No. 376,887.

To all w/wm it may conocen:

Be it known that I, THEoDonn Ponsen, a' citizen of the United States, andv a. resident of South maba, in the county of Douglas and State of Nebraska, bave invented oeitain new and useful lmprovements in Processes of Milling Alfalfa, of Which/the following isa speciiieation. v

My invention relates to processes of milling alfalfa in which tbe cure-d hay is redeced to a meal or ground produet.

lt is the objecto my invention to pnovide a proces by which a more uniform, marketable and healthful product may be' made than is possible by the methods heretofore employed in milling this material.

l'n the milling of alfalfa as heretofore' done all of the material is passed through the machine oimachines, and tbe leaves and finer Steins, being far moes brittle and fragile than the coa-rse stems, are reduced to an almost impalpable powder before 'the stems are suliciently reduced. llius much of the leaf substanoe is lost in tile resultant product, losing identity therein so that the' product apparently consists entirely of fragments of the stems. 'llie product so made, when fed to animals Without admixture with syrup or otherv agglutinant for causing cohesion of the {inely powdered leaf substance, is unhealtbful for the reason that tbe ne powder is drawn into the lungs and by continued use irritates the same so es to cause a predisposition to disease, i not an actual diseased condition ofthe tissue. lf the milling operation is not carried far enough to powder tbe leaves the stems ai'e insuilioiently i'educed and the 'product is thereby rendered unpalatable and is not readily eaten oi' digested by the animals to 7wllicl'i it is fed.

ln my process the more fragile portions of the material, especially the leaves, are removed from the stock and conducted to tbe storage bin o1 packer as fast as the same are reduced to particles of the desired size, While the milling operations on tbe stems and tougher portions of the material ere oontinued. The product so niade, on account of its comparative freedom from dust may be fed directly to anima-ls without mixture with n agglutinant, and when so is' easily digested and assimilated, the leafsebf stance being inthe formel? thin the seeond grinder 9, 'thel the stems .being reduced to comparatively small particles, both ofwhich are readily attacked by the digestive juioee. 5

The accompanyingdrawing is a diagram Y an embodiment oit my inpacker 3. llie tailings from tbe separatingdrag are taken to the rst oit a series oeels or separators Ll, 5, 6 and 7, ot screens 1n which gradually decreases in sine loom the first to the last, as indicated in tlm The ssaid reels or separators ase' of the type provided vvitli double dra-Win.

prefere ly conveyors and tipping valves by Wbclo any desired proportion of the separated steelt may be out o and directed to either of the conveyors, the one conveyer taking 'tbe iinislied or semi-nished stock while tbe other l takes the uninished stock, carrying the same out to be treated with the tailings orseparately handled if desired. The unnislied material directed to the second conveyor 'is designated as the cut-olf. The semi-nislied stock separated by the liest reel at is taken to tlie second reel 5, from orbitale-tite finished stock separated thereby goes foo .e

product. The cut-0d trom tbe rst reel and tbe tailings from tbe second reel are teiten to tlie irst grinder. The tailings from the iirst reel may be taken either to the ist grinder or, Where tbe same consist of long uncut stems, returned to the cutter l, a valve l0 or equivalent devioes being provided for this puepose. The ont-0 trom the second' 'reel may be taires eit e tothe 5m xglinder 8 or tite second grinder 9, a, valve il being. arranged for thispnrpose. The steek troni time rst grinder is token to the tlrd reel 1S,

hem which the nished stocli seperated -tlieieloy lvgoes to tlae product. They tailings and estoi iront the thirdfieel sistem to ll grinder 'being taken eo tile fourth reel 7.

Feomfseid neel the nished stock a,

pass on to the grinders and are further rel duced thereby. However, should any of the; leaf substance, through dam ness, be in such condition that it is not sui'iciently reducedv bythe cutting operation it will, of course,y pass on to the grinders and be reduced there-j vinl together with the stems.

.The mall amount of dust unavoidably reduced in the. various operations is col-g ected by an exhaust fan or blower 12,'the

flow thereto from the various machines being indicated by dotted lines, and the dis# charge therefrom being directed to a collector 13, preferably of the centrifugal or cyclone typen The heavier particles'separated by said collector are taken to the third reel 6, while the exhaust therefrom,- carrying the ner particles, is taken to asecond collector 14, referably of the clothscreen type, from w ich the materials col! lected go to the product.

It will be obvious to those skilled in the art of milling that should it be desired to make two or more grades of product the same may be made by keeping separate the different parts of the stock separated at the various machines, and combining the same in the proper proportions for the different grades desired, instead of taking all the stock to a common receptacle and there combining the same to .make a single-grade product.

Now, having described my invention, what I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

l. The process herein described of pre;

paring a stock product from alfalfa consisting in cutting the cured plant, then sep-A art of the leaf substance and the; more 'ragile portions of the plant from the 'tougher material and depositing the former` in a storage bin, then subjecting the tailingsof the material to a seri-ss of grinding and@ separating operations to abrade or frictionilly reduce said tailings, separating the fin'` aratin a ished from the unfinished material after each grinding operation and directing the finished material to said bin and returning the tailings from the last separation to the' material passing to one of the grinders to once more abrade or frictionally reduce the tailings, and directing all of the remaining separated and finished material to the storseries of re age bin, thereby reducing substantially all of the cured plant and combining the reduced material into a single product.

2. The process of manufacturing an alfalfa product for stock food which consists in cutting the plant to liberate the more fragile portions from the tougher material, then passing the tougher material through a series of grinding operations to abrade or frictionally reduce the tailings, again separating the more fragile portions from the tougher material after each grinding operation and, returning the tailings of the last operation to the material passing through one of the grinders to further abrade or frictionally reduce the remaining tailings and combining all of the reduced material into a single product, whereby substantially all of the plant is converted into a single product.

3. rl`he process of manufacturing an al falfa product for stock food which consists in cutting the plant to liberate the more fragile portions from the tougher material, then separating the more fragile portions from the tougher material, directing the more fragile portions in one direction and conveying the tougher material in a different direction and through a series of grinding operations, again separating the more fragile portions from the tougher material after each grinding operation, then'returning the taillings and combining all of the successively reduced tougher portions with the separ ated more fragile portionsof the last opera-` tion to the material passing through one o1 the grinders and finally directing the more fragile portions to the fragile port-ions lirst separated', and combining all of the successively reduced tougher portions with the separated more fragile portions, whereby substantially all of the plant is converted into a single product.

4t. The process herein described of preparing a stock product from alfalfa which consists in (passing the material through a uctions and separating the iinished from the unnished material after each reduction and continuing the'V reducing and separating operations until substantially all of the material is reduced, and combining the separated or fragile portions and the successively reduced tougher portions.

5. Thelprocess of milling alfalfa which consists in, cutting the cured material, separating the more fragile portions from the tougher portions after such cutting and then further reducing said tougher portions of the material and combining the separated more fragile portions and the successively reduced tougher portions.

6. The process of milling alfalfa which consists in cutting the cured plant, then passing the cut material through a series of reductions and separating the nished from 9. The (p 8. 60mm() l I consisting 'in passing thematerlal through insane?" 'the nniinishei stoclrl'after each reduction,

directing all or the separate :incl ini'shed material to the storage bin and continuing the reducin; and separating operations unsingle. roduct anni directed to said loin.

7. T e process of manufacturing a's'tock food from a plant consisting ot fragile leaves' and relatively tough stems, which consists' in cutting the cured material, then separatingV the leaf substance from the stems aitersuch cutting, then reducinfr the stems by grinding operations, end; hns ly combining the Vreduced material With the separated locie substance.

8. TheA process of. manufacturing s stoclr `through a series or grinding operations, separating the nished material from the -unfinished material after each grinding operation, returning the tailings from, the last' se eration to the materiel essi to one of ythe grinders, and nally combining lall of the remaining separated and inishe nmc terial into a single product.

recess Aof milling alfalfa which is 1ty embodying leaves and stems,

a series of reductions' end separating the finished fromthe `unnishetl materie-l after each reduction ariel combiningthe reduced material into stock focal til all of t e materml is converted into a 10. The process ofmilling'alfalfa. which consists in rst cutting the cured ,material "to liberatethe more fragile portions from thev tougher material, then separating the more fragile portions from the tougher ortions after such cutting, then further re ucing the .tougher portions by grinding opere- 'tions andN combining the seperated more fragile portions and the successively reduced .tougher portions.

11; The process of manufacturing stockoo products rom'cured alfalfa consisting in cutting the plent to liberate the more regile port-ions thereof from the tougher portions, of then'separating the fragile portions from the tougher portions, then comminut'ing the Vtougher portions by successively grinding the same, separating the reduced" portions from thev ground product, end again grinding the tailings from the separation.

' ln 'testimony whereof l have hereunto subscribed my name in the presence of `two Witnesses;

THEODORE xPONSR.

.Witnesseslz i I D; O. BA'RNELL,

' C. C. A. BAUERC'instruir.l 

